As Shut Up Sona heads to the Rotterdam film fest, singer on how dwindling projects due to her outspoken nature compelled her to make the film
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; January 24, 2020)

Sona Mohapatra's offering, Shut Up Sona, is set for its international première at the International Film Festival Rotterdam. The 2019 documentary chronicles her journey to becoming an artiste in Bollywood, her love for the country, and how she emerged as the face of the #MeToo movement. Deepti Gupta's directorial venture sheds light on her uncomfortable relationship with her country.

The singer-actor tells mid-day that the international event will be special for her for more reasons than one. "I will also perform at the closing ceremony."

Mohapatra adds, "[Three years ago] most doors were shutting on me as a musician, and I had to find a way to express myself as an artiste. The selection at Rotterdam has made me believe that good stories always find a way [to excel]. We are proud to take our film to Rotterdam, where we have been invited to represent India, not only with our film, but also via a closing-ceremony performance."

In Mohapatra's journey, her art and her unrelenting spirit to fight for the good, Gupta found sufficient fodder for the making of a bold movie. "Being invited to Rotterdam is exciting for us. It is also a validation that the story has a universal narrative. With Sona being invited to perform too, [it can be said] that she has achieved a feat that no one else has in 28 years," says Gupta.

The documentary, the singer alludes is irreverently brave, and unapologetic. "This film is about music, art, social change and the clashing of the ancient and the modern."

Bharati Dubey (MID-DAY; February 4, 2014)

Qissa, a film produced by National Film Development Corporation (NFDC) and starring Irrfan, has won the Dioraphte Audience Award at the Rotterdam Film Festival. This is the first time an Indian film has won such an award. Directed by Anup Singh, Qissa is a Punjabi film set in the post-partition era and it has Irrfan playing a Sikh in it. Dealing with the subject of ethnic cleansing and general chaos that accompanied India’s partition in 1947, it is the story of Umber Singh attempting to forge a new life for his family while keeping their true identities a secret in their own community.

When contacted, Irrfan said that Qissa is a tough film that also tests its audiences. “The Lunchbox may have been a more commercial film but with Qissa, if you connect with the film, it will stay with you for a really long time. Moreover, this is the first time I have spoken Punjabi in a film and I must say that I’ve discovered a certain music in the language,” he said, adding that there has been a surge in good cinema over the last two- three years.

Interestingly, Qissa is the first film to be shot under the Indian-German co-production treaty; it is an international co-production between India, Germany, Netherlands and France. The film has earlier travelled to other film festivals such as Abu Dhabi Film Festival, New York Film Festival, South Asian International Film Festival and Toronto International Film Festival.